This post is by Bernie Carr, apartmentprepper.com
Ever since the coronavirus pandemic started, there has been a lot more interest in emergency preparedness and survival. That is only natural since the pandemic has had global reach and has caused widespread suffering in varying degrees.
When someone gets started with preparedness, they immediately ramp up by buying a lot of food, water, and in the recent months, toilet paper. On one hand, it’s good to see a lot of people getting interested in preparing for emergencies, on the other hand, it is also a good idea to step back and prioritize.
This brings me to today’s topic, the survival rule of three.
What is the survival rule of three?
The survival rule of three is meant to help you focus on immediate survival needs. You can survive:
- three minutes without air
- three hours without shelter (in extreme weather)
- three days without water
- three weeks without food
Implications
When you immediately jump into storing up tons of food, it’s a good thing, but don’t ignore the other more immediate needs. Let’s look at how we might cover these other needs using the survival rule of three.
Air
This is something that most people take for granted, but it’s crucial that we pay attention to this most important need. One way to cover the need for air is to stock up on N-95 masks. As we saw in the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, masks quickly sold out of stores and they are still hard to find. Experts initially refrained from recommending masks, but have since changed their direction. Now, many establishments such as Costco and other stores require masks for entry. People have are also making their own masks or buying pre-made masks.
It’s also a good idea to look at other ways you can protect your air. One way you can protect the air in your home is buy installing an air filtration system that protects against nuclear, biological and chemical (NBC) threats. One such manufacturer of air filtration systems is Castellex.com
Castellex offers a wide range of NBC air filtration systems for residential, commercial, and marine use. Their products filter up to 99.99% of particles down to 0.03 microns in size. This efficiency results in Castellex products earning the highest possible HEPA rating of H14.
Castellex NBC Air Filtration Systems can provide safe air for any room in your home or bug-out location that you designate as a panic room or safe room. They feature positive air pressure, which raises the air pressure inside the room, which pushes out outside air and contaminants and keeps them from entering the room. They can ship their NBC air filtration systems worldwide (except countries where international restrictions for certain products apply).
Shelter
Whether you live in an apartment or home, you are already covered as far as shelter needs. But if you were to bug out, you need to make sure you have some form of shelter such as a tent, or learn how to build a shelter from materials around you such as a lean-to.
In order to be comfortable in cold weather, you’ll also ways to generate warmth such as building a fire, layering clothing or insulating your windows to keep out the draft.
Water
Water is another survival need you should pay attention to. We all need water for drinking, cooking, cleaning and washing. Because you can only survive three days without drinking water, you need at least one gallon per person per day for each member of your household. Don’t forget your pets need water too. Another way to ensure you can cover your water needs is to learn various ways to purify water and have a good way to purify water.
Food
Finally, we get to food needs. You can actually live without food for three weeks – you’ll be very hungry, thin and lethargic, but you’ll be able to survive as long as you find food within that time.
When building your food storage, choose foods that your family will normally eat. Buy a small quantity to add to your stockpile each to you go grocery shopping. Build up your emergency food supplies so you have at least two to three weeks worth of food, then increase slowly as your space and budget allow.
The final word
When planning for your emergency survival needs, it’s a good idea to pay attention to the survival rule of three. It’s great to stock up on food if that is the first thing you thought about, but don’t neglect the other needs.
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About the author:
Bernie Carr is the founder of Apartment Prepper. She has written several books including the best-selling Prepper’s Pocket Guide, Jake and Miller’s Big Adventure, The Penny-Pinching Prepper and How to Prepare for Most Emergencies on a $50 a Month Budget. Her work appears in sites such as the Allstate Blog and Clark.com, as well as print magazines such as Backwoods Survival Guide and Prepper Survival Guide. She has been featured in national publications such as Fox Business and Popular Mechanics. Learn more about Bernie here.
